page_title: Culture of Pakistan
section_title: National dress
hierarchical_section_title: Culture of Pakistan / National dress
caption_attribution_description: Portrait of a Muslim girl from Sindh, showing method of wearing ear and nose rings, necklace and anklets Full-length standing studio portrait of a Muslim girl from Karachi in Sind, Pakistan, taken by Michie and Company in c. 1870, from the Archaeological Survey of India Collections. This is one of a series of photographs commissioned by the Government of India in the 19th century, in order to gather information about the dress, customs, trade and religions of the different racial groups on the sub-continent. Images like this one were exhibited at European international exhibitions during the nineteenth century. The girl in the photograph demonstrates the method of wearing ear and nose rings, necklace and anklets. She is also wearing ceremonial dress and has a lock of hair pulled down over her forehead. Oriental and India Office Collection, British Library.
context_page_description: Culture of Pakistan is intertwined with the culture of the broader Indian subcontinent and Central Asia. Comprises numerous ethnic groups: the Punjabis, Saraikis, Pothwaris, Kashmiris, Sindhis, Muhajirs, Makrani in the south; Baloch, Hazaras and Pashtuns in the west; and the Dards, Wakhi, Baltis, Shinaki and Burusho communities in the north. The culture of these Pakistani ethnic groups have been greatly influenced by many of its neighbours, such as the other South Asian, Iranic, Turkic as well as the peoples of Central Asia and West Asia.
  The region has formed a distinct unit within the main geographical complex of Indian subcontinent, the Middle East and Central Asia from the earliest times, and is analogous to the intermediary position of Afghanistan. There are differences among the ethnic groups in cultural aspects such as dress, food, and religion, especially where pre-Islamic customs differ from Islamic practices. Their cultural origins also reveal influences from far afield and indigenous, including ancient India and Central Asia.
context_section_description: The national dress is shalwar kameez for both men and women. It consists of a long, loose fitting tunic with trousers baggy enough to not to see the shape of their legs.
caption: Muslim girl wearing Shalwar kameez, c. 1870
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